Thursday Movie Picks: Movies about Villains

Honestly, part of me has always loved the bad boy angel. Movies about villains are even better but they are not very common. But also if I think about villains I do go straight for the superhero movies. Something which I really didn’t want to do for this week so… let’s see how I wiggled myself out of his one.

3. TAXI DRIVER (1976)

Considering how little I turn to 70’s or 80’s, not to decades before that, I’m glad I watched Taxi Driver. I ended up liking it a lot and can see the similarities between this and Nightcrawler (which I love!) so well now. But Taxi Driver in itself is a story of a mentally unstable veteran. Things do get a bit crazy and violent by the end. Robert De Niro as Travis is great. There’s never a dull moment and I have only good memories of this movie. I’m not generally an all in kind of gal with Scorsese but this is definitely among my favourites of his filmography.

2. THE SHINING (1980)

Moving on to the 80’s, we have another famous villain movie – The Shining. This mention does spoil the movie but I’m guessing most have seen it already. If not, I’m surprised because even I’ve seen it and that’s saying a lot. This follows a family who goes to a hotel and bad things start to happen. Kubrick gives us a lot of memorable scenes, many used as gifs and memes, and Jack Nicholson introduces himself as Johnny. I mean what else is there to say?

1. PULP FICTION (1994)

As you can see, after the 70’s and 80’s we get 90’s. While definitely not in the same ballpark Pulp Fiction also follows villains. The tone here is definitely different, more lighter, comical and oh so Tarantino. Haven’t seen this one in a while but I do remember that this one here is the only one where I really rooted for the villains. By the way, another link, the order I listed the movies here is also the same they appear in the IMDb Top 250 movies. So Pulp Fiction is in the lead on #8, The Shining follows it as €63 and Taxi Driver is #107.

THIS SERIES IS CREATED BY WANDERING THROUGH THE SHELVES

mettelray

November 19, 2020

Thursday Movie Picks

Movie villains, Pulp Fiction, Taxi Driver, The Shining, Thursday Movie Picks, TMP, Villains

8 responses to “Thursday Movie Picks: Movies about Villains”

Sonia

November 19, 2020 at 1:35 pm

Great picks!!! I haven’t seen Taxi Driver in a long time but I loved it the first time and now I feel like doing a double feature with Nightcrawler.

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Joel

November 19, 2020 at 4:40 pm

Great choices even if I hate two of them with a passion.
I don’t love The Shining but it’s probably the best adaptation possible of the book. Compared to my feeling for the other two though it’s a winner.
DeNiro and Jodie Foster give powerful, just acclaimed performances in Taxi Driver but lordy I loathed that film (I detested Nightcrawler as well)
Pulp Fiction seems to be a love it or hate it movie. I’m in the latter camp. Good cast but it was torture.
Once I started looking around I was surprised how many films have villainous main characters. Made choosing this week pretty simple.

The Shadow on the Wall (1950)-Businessman David Starrling (Zachary Scott) is knocked unconscious by a mysterious figure during a confrontation with his faithless wife Celia (Kristine Miller) and wakes to find Celia murdered. The couple’s young daughter Susan (Gigi Perreau), witnessed her mother’s death but saw only a shadow on the wall and is unaware that the killer is Celia’s evil sister, her Aunt Dell (Ann Sothern). Dell, now terrified of discovery must find a way to do away with her own niece before Susan realizes the truth. One of Ann Sothern’s rare villainess roles this includes future First Lady Nancy Reagan (billed as Nancy Davis) in a major supporting role.

M (1931)-Moody, expressionist classic tells the tale of Hans Beckert (Peter Lorre), a serial killer who preys on children. When he becomes the focus of a massive Berlin police manhunt his crimes are so repellant that other criminals join the police in his pursuit. Lorre is brilliant in the lead.

Sweet Smell of Success (1957)-Vicious New York columnist J.J. Hunsecker (Burt Lancaster) is a powerful man capable and willing to make or destroy Broadway careers in print. However he can’t seem to control is his younger sister Susan (Susan Harrison) who he is abnormally fond of and who is in a relationship with jazzman Steve Dallas (Marty Milner) of which he strongly disapproves. To get his way Hunsecker recruits publicist Sidney Falco (Tony Curtis) who he describes as “A cookie full of arsenic” to find a way to split the couple, no matter how ruthless the method. Well-acted portrait of deeply rotten people.

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Ronyell (a.k.a Rabbitearsblog)

November 19, 2020 at 8:53 pm

We both match on Pulp Fiction and the Shining! Such iconic villains! Great list!

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1. MettelRay
  
  November 28, 2020 at 1:52 pm
  
  I know right, I feel lik eyou can’t go wrong with those picks. 😛
  
  Reply
thepunktheory

November 23, 2020 at 12:06 pm

those are all brilliant picks – I love every single one of these films!

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1. MettelRay
  
  November 28, 2020 at 1:51 pm
  
  Ah that worked out well then! 😀
  
  Reply
WANDERING THROUGH THE SHELVES

November 27, 2020 at 3:25 am

I like Taxi Driver though not The Shining.

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1. MettelRay
  
  November 28, 2020 at 1:51 pm
  
  I get that, they are very different yet similar in ways.
  
  Reply